The Washington Capitals announced their 2011-12 pre-season schedule today and they will open up that portion of their season in the Baltimore Hockey Classic at 1st Mariner Arena on September 20 at 7 p.m against the Nashville Predators. It should be an exciting event for the city of Baltimore, who have been big supporters of the Caps based on feedback from the team in regards to season ticket holders as well as the increased ratings on Comcast in the Charm City area.

The next couple of weeks will be big for the Caps since the NHL Draft takes place in Minnesota this Friday and Saturday, June 24-25, and then on Friday, July 1st the NHL free agency period begins. GM George McPhee said in a pre-draft conference call last week that if there are trade discussions at the draft, he will attempt to be a part of them. That doesn’t guarantee the Caps will make any deals, but it shows that the GM is looking for ways to improve his hockey team. McPhee also noted in that conference call that he thought this draft lacks real difference makers, that it wasn’t as strong as other drafts, and that if you are going to giveaway draft picks this was the year to do it.

The full press release and pre-season schedule is listed below:

The Washington Capitals 2011 preseason schedule features seven games against four opponents and includes three games at Verizon Center. The Capitals will open their preseason schedule against the Nashville Predators in the Baltimore Hockey Classic at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore on September 20 at 7 p.m.

The Capitals will begin their preseason road schedule on Wednesday, Sept. 21 (7 p.m.) at Columbus versus the Blue Jackets before facing off against the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center on Friday, Sept. 23 (8:30 p.m.).

The team’s preseason home opener at Verizon Center is Monday, Sept. 26 (7 p.m.) against the Blue Jackets. The Capitals will then travel to Nashville on Sept. 28 (8 p.m.) before returning home to face the Buffalo Sabres on Sept. 30 (7 p.m.) and the Blackhawks on Oct. 2 (5 p.m.) at Verizon Center.

The Capitals were 5-1-0 in the preseason last year, and their all-time preseason record is 140-112-29-9.

The 1st Mariner Arena, formerly the Baltimore Arena, is Baltimore’s largest indoor venue. The Capitals called Landover, Maryland home from 1974-1997. They played their home games at the Capital Centre before moving to downtown Washington, D.C. for the 1997-98 season.

Audio from every preseason game will be broadcast live on WashingtonCaps.com. The complete 2011-12 NHL regular season schedule will be released at a later date.